Steam-heating apparatus



(No Model.)

E. P. OSBORNE. Steam Heating Apparatus.

No. 241,501. Patented May 17,1881.

N, PETERS, Photo-Lithographer, Washington, D. C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EUGENE F. OSBORNE, OF ST. PAUL, LASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO HERBERT M. CARPENTER, OF MlNNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

STEAM H EATII NG APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Lettens Patent No. 241,507, dated May 17, 11881.

Application filed April 16, 1880.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EUGENE 1 OSBORNE,

I of the city of St.l?aul,State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements 5 in Steam-Heatin g Apparatus; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had: to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form part of this specification.

The invention herein described relates to devices for regulating or controlling the transmission of steam-heat from one systemof pipes to another, which systems have no interior com I 5 munications with each other, the same being more particularly intended for use in connection with a general steam -heating system for cities and towns, at the several points at which the local heating apparatuses of individual buildings take their heat from the main distributing system. It is thus shown in connection with such a system of general steam-heatin g in Letters Patent No. 236,247, granted to me January 4, 1881. Said invention consists in the matters here inafter set forth, and pointed out in the claims. In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation, in partial section, of a heat-transmitting device provided with myinvention, and Fig.2 is a vero tical section of one fofm of regulating device supply and the local distributing systems are shown only at their points of connection with the transmitter. The several parts are herein designated by the same letters as in the abovementioned Letters Patent.

A represents a steamsupply branch leading into a building from. the street-main.

(No model.)

T is a transmitter, which consists of aclosed vertical "metal cylinder suitably supported in place. Said cylinder is interiorl y divided by the two parallel horizontal diaphragms it into an upper chamber, a lower chamber, and a central 5 5 or intermediate chamber, T. The upper and lower chambers so cut off, are connected with each other by numerous tubes 25, but they have noconnectionwiththechainberT. Thesteamsupply pipe A enters the upper chamber, and 6c the return (or discharge) pipe B leads from the lower chamber. The central chamber, T, is connected into the local distribution system or circuit, so as to form a part thereof, by the pipes at and b--a being the outflow-pipe leading from 6 said chamber near the top, and I) the inflow or return pipe leading into said chamber near the bottom.

In the operation of the transmitter, the heat of vaporization, due to a given pressure of the steam supplied through pipe A is transmitted to the fluidcontained in the local circuit T a b through the walls of the tubes t., A circulation is thereby induced through said local circuit, the heated fluid flowing outward through 7 a, and returning after being cooled, through the pipe In In parting withits heat of vaporization the steam supplied is, of course, condensed. Asaconsequence the top of the transmitter is occupied by steam and the lower portion by the water ofcondensation. It is proposed that the water-line shall usually be above the bottom of the tubes 25 t. The heat imparted in the transmitter from the contents of the main circuit or pipe to the contents of the 8 5 local circuit or system is not only the heat of vaporization in the steam, but is also the heat,

or aportion of the heat, of the condense-water, for, as is well known, the temperature of the condense-water at the instant of condensation is equal to that of the steam from which it is condensed, but the water quickly gives oft its heat to a contiguous body of lower temper-attire, so that it is only atthe surface of the water that the high temperature mentioned 9 5 prevails. For the purposes of this description a plane located a short distance below the water-surface may therefore be imagined to exist, above which plane, heat is transmitted from the main to the local circuit or system, and

below which, heat is not transmitted. It is clear that if this plane or the parallel watersurface be raised and lowered in the tubes the area of heat-transmitting tube-surface will be varied, and the amount of heat transmitted will be correspondingly varied.

For the purpose of automatically raising and lowering the water-level in the tubes 25, and thereby automatically regulating the amount of heat transmitted from the main to the local circuit or system, and for the further purpose of effecting this regulation with reference to the varying expenditure of heat throughout the local circuit, an ordinary pressure -diaphragm regulator, G, may be employed as follows: The upper face of the diaphragm 9 Fig. 2, is subjected to pressure from the chamber T of the local circuit through the pipe g. In

the pipe B is located a valve, G, whose stem 9 connects directly, or through the medium of the weight-arm g ,with the diaphragm-pin y so that pressure from the local circuit on said diaphragm 9 tends to close the valve G. The weight G on the other hand, operates through the arm to oppose the pressure of the diaphragm and to open the valve G, said arm g being for this purpose appropriately connected with the valve-stem g and diaphragm-pin g The pressure on the local circuit being, of

course, proportionate with the heat ofsaid circuit, when the latter is less than the degree at which the regulatoris set, the valve G will be opened, and vice versa. The degree of heat required in the local circuit may be varied at will by shifting the position of the weight G on the arm 9 In starting the apparatus, thelower chamber of the transmitter will be empty, and the lower diaphragm will therefore be a medium of heattransmission as well as the tubes; but the transmitter should be of such dimensions that in ordinary operation the tubes will be partially filled with condense-water.

Gages may be applied to the transmitter, if desired, to indicate the water-level of both circuits in said transmitter.

An automatic air-valve should be applied to the chamber T, (preferably discharging into the discharge-pipe B if the latter is in a circuit,) and a return-bend trap, a of proper head, is inserted in the pipe 13 as shown in Fig. 1.

Obviously, instead of the diaphragm-regulator shown, the unequal expansion of different metals may be utilized to efl'ect the regulation required, and the valve G may be located in either the discharge B as shown, or in the steam-supply A I claim as my invention- 1. The combination, with a steam -supply pipe, alocal distributing-circuit, and apparatus for transmitting heat from the former to the latter, of regulating mechanism adapted to be set at will to secure the transmission of any desired amount of heat from the steam of the supply-pipe to the contents of the local distributing-circuit, and also adapted to automatt cally maintain a practically constant pressure or heat in the local distribution of the degree required, substantially as described.

2. In combination with a steam-supply pipe, a closed local circuit, and apparatus for transmitting heat from the steam of the supply-pipe to the contents of the local circuit, a device or devices actuated by the heat of the local circuit to control the amount of heat transmitted to the contents of said local circuit from the steam of the main supply, substantiallyas described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

E. F. OSBORNE.

Witnesses:

M. E. DAYTON, J nssn 00X, Jr. 

